The present invention relates to dispensing pre-packaged rollable articles directly from the packages in which the articles are stored. In particular, the invention relates to a dispenser that is inserted into the package of stored articles to dispense the articles individually from the package.
Various types of dispensing devices and dispensing methods for rollable articles are known. Most of these devices are dispensing racks or distributing devices that are particularly well-suited to individually dispense rollable articles for both retail and personal dispensing. Examples of typical prior art racks and devices are disclosed in Washburn U.S. Pat. No. 1,753,957, Root U.S. Pat. No. 3,356,279, Deffner et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,105,126, Eckert U.S. Pat. No. 4,228,903, Spamer et al. 4,997,094, Delaney U.S. Pat. No. 5,356,033, and Blasko et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,228,590. In the prior dispensing racks the individual articles must be manually loaded into the racks by hand. Because most rollable articles, like beverage containers, are pre-packaged, manual unpacking in addition to manual loading must be performed prior to use of these devices. The requirement of these procedures is inefficient, time consuming, and inconvenient. In addition, the use of these devices increases the risk of damaging the articles and their contents, and also poses risks of physical injury to the individual performing the manual procedures.
In view of the foregoing, devices and methods to controllably dispense individual rollable articles directly from the packages in which they are sold have also been developed. U.S. Pat. No. 5,390,821, Markel, discloses a method and apparatus for dispensing rollable articles from a package. The device disclosed in Markel is secured over an open end of a package containing the articles, and contains a dispensing port at its base. The Markel device acts as a wall to prevent the articles from spilling out of the package, and at the same time permits individual dispensing from the dispensing port at its base. Because the device must be large enough to cover the entire end of a package, it is cumbersome and requires considerable material to manufacture. In addition, the device is vulnerable to unpredicted movement of the articles such that articles may become jammed near the port, or may not roll forward into the dispensing port without manual assistance to tip the package forward.
As a result, the need exists for a device that controllably dispenses pre-packaged rollable articles which is easy to use and cost-effective to manufacture, as well as capable of creating predicted rolling and dispensing of the articles from the package. The present invention relates to a device for dispensing pre-packaged rollable articles by utilizing an inclined base that is inserted directly into the rollable article package and containing a receiving arm of sufficient height that allows for controllably dispensing the articles individually from an open end of the package. In particular, the present invention is very well-suited to dispense 12 ounce beverage container cans pre-packaged in standard twelve and twenty-four count packages.